International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Room 301-302, B1 Building, Van Phuc Diplomatic Compound, 298 Kim Ma Street, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi, Vietnam.
Centre for Public Health and Ecosystem Research, Hanoi University of Public Health, 1A Duc Thang Road, North Tu Liem, Hanoi, Vietnam.
Infect Dis Poverty. 2017 Feb 16;6(1):39. doi: 10.1186/s40249-017-0249-7.
Food-borne diseases are attracting a lot of attention in Vietnam as a result of repeated episodes of adulterated and unsafe food. In this paper, we provide some perspectives on food safety in Vietnam from the point of view of an international research institution working on food safety with partners in the country. We argue that one of the key issues of food safety in Vietnam is that certain food value chain stakeholders lack ethics, which leads to the production and trading of unsafe foods in order to make profits irrespective of adverse health effects on consumers. In turn, the shortfall in ethical behaviours around food can be attributed to a lack of incentives or motivating factors.Although food safety causes panic in the population, it is unclear how much contaminated food contributes to the burden of food-borne diseases and food poisonings in Vietnam. However, globally, the biggest health problem associated with food are infections from consuming food contaminated with viruses, bacteria or parasites. A major food safety challenge is the inappropriate way of communicating food risks to the public. Another key constraint is the inherent difficulty in managing food in wet markets and from smallholder production. On the other hand, local foods, and local food production and processing are an important cultural asset as well as being essential to food safety, and these aspects can be put at risk if food safety concerns motivate consumers to purchase more imported foods.In this paper, we also discuss good experiences in food safety management from other countries and draw lessons learnt for Vietnam on how to better deal with the current food safety situation.
由于反复出现掺假和不安全食品事件，食源性疾病在越南引起了广泛关注。在本文中，我们从一家国际食品安全研究机构的角度出发，结合该国的合作伙伴，提供了一些有关越南食品安全的观点。我们认为，越南食品安全的一个关键问题是某些食品价值链利益相关者缺乏道德规范，这导致了不安全食品的生产和交易，从而不顾对消费者健康的不利影响来获取利润。反过来，食品道德行为的缺失可以归因于缺乏激励或激励因素。尽管食品安全引起了民众的恐慌，但尚不清楚受污染食品在多大程度上导致了越南食源性疾病和食物中毒的负担。然而，在全球范围内，与食品相关的最大健康问题是食用受病毒、细菌或寄生虫污染的食物而感染。食品安全的一个主要挑战是向公众传达食品风险的方式不当。另一个关键限制因素是难以妥善管理湿货市场和小农户生产的食品。另一方面，如果食品安全问题促使消费者购买更多的进口食品，那么当地食品及其生产和加工就会成为食品安全的重要文化资产，同时也会面临风险。本文还讨论了其他国家在食品安全管理方面的良好经验，并为越南吸取教训，探讨如何更好地应对当前的食品安全形势。
